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Pallone: 'More hopeful' that Senate will include public option

The head of a key House subcommittee said on Friday that he is "more
hopeful" that the Senate will include a public option in their final
healthcare reform bill.

Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), chairman of
the Energy and Commerce Health subcommittee, took to Twitter on Tuesday
to say that he is encouraged by recent developments in the Senate's
effort to merge its two reform proposals:

More
hopeful that Senate includes public option. A stronger option in House
& Senate = more likely a better version survives conference.

Senate
Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has been grappling with the
decision of whether or not to include a public health insurance option
in his chamber's final bill. Senate Finance Committee chairman Max
Baucus (D-Mont.) has long said that a public plan could not earn the 60
votes necessary to guarantee cloture in the Senate.

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But
recently, some centrist Democratic senators have indicated they would
be open to a compromise on the public option that would allow states to
opt out of a public health insurance plan.

Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) said
yesterday evening that Senate Democrats have 60 votes to invoke cloture
on a bill with a public option without having to attract Republican
support from centrist Sen. Olympia Snowe (Maine).